


What Comes Next

by BleuSarcelle



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: ? - Freeform, Angst, Blood, Cannon Verse, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Keith and Shiro are Adoptive Siblings, Keith and Shiro are Siblings, Keith is a Mess, Keith misses his bro, M/M, Pre-Relationship, Right after the end of season 2, Team Bonding, Team as Family, and stuff, bc of stress, broganes, coughing up blood, emotional breakdown, he's too sad, hint of the next Black Paladin, missing shiro, nose bleed
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-07
Updated: 2017-05-07
Packaged: 2018-10-29 05:50:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,382
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10847742
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BleuSarcelle/pseuds/BleuSarcelle
Summary: “I’m fine.”“Keith, please, Shiro wouldn’t –”“Don’t.” Keith cracks, voice quiet and so fragile that it makes Allura’s heart to take a sharp flip. “Please. Just – don’t, Allura.”(The one where Keith doesn't know how to handle losing his brother, the only family he had left, yet again and it's breaking him slowly. The team tries to reach out and help but he's stubborn and it's until Lance brings him a lil piece of Shiro that Keith allows himself to break.)





	What Comes Next

**Author's Note:**

> Welp, welp, welp.
> 
> Here, take this bc I dunno what to do with it. Based on [THIS POST](https://illesty.tumblr.com/post/160322622186/just-putting-it-out-there-nosebleeds-are-a-rare), lmao I uh...I dunno what I wrote tbh so just...uh, take it. I was going to wait until my night to post it but like....fuck it, lmao. Here. 
> 
> Special thanks to both of my betas; @Kitty and @Yas, thank you guys for the support! 
> 
> Disclaimer: Voltron doesn't belong to me.

There are eyes on him.

Keith can feel them. From the worried and anxious glances Hunk sends his way when he passes by the kitchen’s open door but doesn't step inside to Allura and Pidge’s hesitation when he pushes past them at the entrance of the training room and starts his training sequence.

He can feel Coran’s concern that seems like it’s washing over him in waves when the Royal Advisor finds him late at night outside Shiro’s empty room and guides him back to his own.

Keith can even easily feel Lance’s heavy stare every time he visits Black’s hangar and spends hours and hours sitting in front of the sleeping Lion.

He’s been able to feel them all but he still can’t hear a thing.

Keith can’t hear the way his bayard hits the Gladiator’s middle, or the way the robot buzzes with an incoming attack before he dodges it, barely missing the hit.

There’s nothing for him to hear except a muffled humming in the back of his head, the familiar sound of his brother’s voice being the only thing Keith takes comfort in these days but, of course, with Shiro being gone, it doesn't last.

The faint memory of Shiro’s humming seems to dim with each passing day. The warm and safe feelings that it used to bring him are gone and Keith _tries_ ; he tries so hard to hold on to them. He _tries_ to dig and dig inside his chest to pull them out of his heart to remember because maybe, just maybe, if he can do that, Shiro will come back.

But he doesn’t. His brother doesn’t appear in front of him, in the middle of the training room, as he fights robot after robot and the humming only turns fainter in his mind, turning into a vague memory and making him even wonder if it ever really happened.

That’s why when the humming stop, and the room is left in silence, Keith can’t do anything but scream.

Keith rages. He shouts, curses and yells at the universe, at the Galra, at the war they never signed up for. Keith rampages until there’s nothing left inside him.

He pants heavily, barely acknowledging the remaining shattered parts of the Gladiator, lying a few feet away from him. His head is pounding and his heart is hammering against his ribcage wildly as he leans forward and bends over with his hands against his burning thighs.

Keith stares at the white floor below him as a few drops of sweat fall from his face and start staining the floor. It doesn’t take more than a tick before he finally becomes aware of the red dots that appear among them.

The teen lets out a shuddering breath out as he tips his head back and allows himself to fall on the floor, barely hearing the way his bayard deactivates and falls from his shaking hand.

Keith sniffles loudly, groaning when he feels the blood running down his nose. He forces himself to raise his hand to his nose to feel it roughly before moving it in front of his face.

He stares at his hand and feels slightly bemused at the blood that keeps dripping from his finger tips and sliding down his palm before he scoffs, swiping it away on his pants nonchalantly.

“Start training sequence.” He mumbles hoarsely, standing wobbly on his feet before taking a deep breath, raising his bayard high and moving back to his previous position in the middle of the training floor.

“End training sequence.” A voice behind him speaks up and the Gladiator turns off before it is able to take even a step forward.

Keith scowls and turns his head towards the voice, eyes widening slightly as he catches Allura’s glare with a mix of annoyance and worry clear on her face and in her eyes. Keith sniffles one more time, as if trying to hide his crime scene.

Allura doesn’t fall for it.

The Princess makes her way towards her Paladin, sighing when she takes in the sight of Keith’s face with blood dripping from his nose and smeared nearby on his cheeks.

“Keith, you need to stop this. Your body is already under a lot of stress, you cannot keep pushing it in this manner.” Keith scoffs at the words and waves the concerns away.

“I’m fine.” He replies shortly, sniffling one again to keep the blood inside him and Allura sends him an unamused look.

“Keith, please.” She sighs, taking out a small handkerchief and raising it towards his face before Keith flinches away from it and her hand falls back in defeat.

Allura frowns. “Shiro wouldn’t –” She starts but stops herself when she sees the way Keith freezes at the name and then shakes his head.

“Don’t.” He cracks, voice quiet and so fragile that it makes Allura’s heart to take a sharp flip. “Please. Just – don’t, Allura.”

“He wouldn’t want this, Keith.” She whispers sadly, taking a step forward and taking the teen’s hand on her own, dropping the handkerchief in his palm, “Please, be careful. This is not healthy, you –”

“I need to go.” He declares abruptly, pushing the piece of cloth back to her hand as he takes a step to the side and frees himself from her touch, “I-I gotta – Yeah, I uh – See you, bye.”

They stand in awkward silence before Keith coughs uncomfortably and walks away, heading towards the showers and ignoring the way Allura calls him for him one last time.

* * *

Keith coughs against the palm of his hand and waves off Coran’s arched eyebrow when he turns his attention to him.

The scanner on his arm beeps and he watches as Coran takes the small tablet in his hand and brush the surface of his moustache deep in thought as he reads the analysis.

“Your stress levels are extremely high.” Coran announces softly, “You need more rest and you are greatly dehydrated, not to mention malnourished, having in mind you have been skipping dinner for a few nights since –”

“Can I go back to training, now?” Keith cuts off, grabbing his jacket from the counter as he jumps down the med bay table.

Coran frowns. “Keith, I just told you that you need to rest –“

“We’re at war.” Keith snaps, “We are at war and Shiro’s – _Shiro’s_ –!”

Keith growls and throws his jacket to the floor angrily, letting out a frustrated shout as he passes a hand through his hair.

Coran stares at him sadly before he takes a step forward and places a hand over Keith’s shoulder, squeezing softly.

“I know that Shiro told you to take his place as a leader in case something like this happened.” Coran speaks gently, “But you’re not alone, Keith. Let us help. You may be the next Black Paladin, you may be not, but let us help you figure it out. Let the team to care for you.”

Keith’s breathe hitches and he bites his lower lip as he feels the sting on his eyes. He can’t do much than to turn his head away from Coran.

“Can I go now, please?” He murmurs tiredly and he feels Coran’s hesitation before he raises his hand from his shoulder, allowing him to walk away.

* * *

Hunk is walking down the hall when he hears it. He stops on his track and follows the dry coughs coming from the bathroom inside Keith’s room.

He doesn’t hesitate to drops on his knees besides Keith when he catches the sight of the teen’s face pressed hard against the toilet’s surface.

Hunk puts a hand on Keith’s back and feels him tense up before another wave of coughs distracts him and Hunk’s stomach drops unpleasantly when he sees the red liquid falling on the once clear water.

Keith doesn’t stop coughing, spilling more blood into the toilet and dry heaving for a few more agonizing minutes before his shoulders fall and he pushes himself off, his body limp as he leans against Hunk’s hand on his back.

Hunk makes sure to flush the toilet before he stands up, careful of not making any abrupt moves that may upset Keith’s state. He then grabs a cloth from one of the drawers, wetting it on the sink with cold water before kneeling once again besides the tired teen, wiping some of the sweat and blood dripping from Keith’s face and mouth.

“I’m –I’m okay.” Keith’s rasps out, “It’s –It’s nothing, I’m okay.”

Hunk just shushes him softly, saving his reprimands for another time as he continues cleaning the black haired teen’s face and if he catches few clear drops of water falling from Keith’s eyes.

Well, Hunk stays silent and focuses on wiping those away too.

* * *

“I’m fine.”

Pidge shrugs her shoulder, pushing the wet cloth further into Keith’s bloody nose.

“I never said you weren’t.” She mumbles softly, letting her hand drop once he takes the cloth with his hands and wipes the blood away.

Keith’s eyes soften as Pidge leans her body on his right side, pushing herself under his chin as they both stare at the universe outside through the thin glass in between.

“Keith, just – please.” She whispers, voice unusually small as she raises her gaze to look at him.

“It’s nothing serious, just a few nose bleeds.” He tries to explain but Pidge cuts him off with a huff.

“Just take care, Keith.” She mumbles, dropping her eyes back to the sight in front of them, “I …I don’t think we can afford losing anyone else. I don’t think I would be able to handle it.”  

Keith doesn’t reply but he puts an arm around her shoulder and pulls her even closer as he push his head back, letting it rest against the wall.

* * *

Lance is not surprised when he catches the red dot on the far end of Black’s hangar in front of the unresponsive Lion.

Lance takes a seat besides Keith, his eyes never leaving Keith’s profile as the black haired teen just stares up at Black’s dead eyes.

He doesn’t bother to try and talk. It didn’t work the first time and it won’t work now. Lance resigns himself to sit and let his presence be enough for the black haired teen.

The silence around them is a little more than suffocating, the faint rumbling sound of the Castle not being enough to echo around them and Lance is usually okay with this, but right now, he looks for a sense of familiarity, for something to calm the tension in the air.

He does the first thing that comes to his mind.

He starts humming, aimlessly and distracted as his brain fills him up with the memories that comes with the old melody. It’s an old song, one he used to sing with his siblings when he was little. It never failed to sooth him, even in the lonely night that sometimes became a little too much out here in space.

That’s why he hums, to fill the silence. He finds comfort in the soft melody and his mouth twitches as memories of his family flash through his mind.

He stops abruptly when Keith lets out a sharp sob besides him.

“No, no! Please, don’t stop.” Keith whispers, breath choked up and rubbing his right eye hard with the palm of his hand as he bites his lower lip hard in hopes to stop it from quivering but sobs just keep shaking his entire body. “Please, Lance, d-don’t –”

“Okay.” Lance breathes out, a little unsure with the turn of events but doesn’t hesitate to agree to his friend’s plead, “Okay, okay, I got you, buddy.” He reassurance before he pulls the sobbing teen into his arms. “It’s okay, I got you. I won’t stop.”

So, he doesn’t stop. He hums the melody softly near Keith’s ear as he holds him before he starts singing, quietly under his breath, gentle words of comfort slipping through his mouth and his heart flips sharply when Keith’s sniffles turn into heart breaking sobs, mumbling incoherently about how Shiro used to hum for him when they were kids and all the memories a simple melody held inside of him.

Lance’s heart breaks at each confession and every single piece Keith pours out.

“I-I can’t d-do this, L-Lance.” Keith wails, nails digging into the brunet’s arm hard but not enough for him to move away, “I-I c-can’t. I d-don’t want to b-be the l-leader!  I _can't_ be a leader! And – And I just – I’m losing him, I can’t even hold on to his m-memory any-anymore and I’m –”

Lance continues to hum, a little choked up with emotions but he doesn’t stop, he can’t stop, not when Keith’s breaking in his arms and he’s the only thing keeping him together.

“God, b-bring him b-back, p-please. He was – He was all I h-had left and he’s g-gone. He’s _gone_ , Lance. I lost him, _a-again_ and I just – W-Why wasn’t I e-enough? Why c-can’t I be enough?” Keith sobs out, burying his face on Lance’s shirt, “Why do I keep losing people I love? Lance, why? _P-Please_ , w-why?”

Lance’s singing cracks slightly and the brunet can feel the way his eyes start getting misty. He pushes down the lump on his throat and keeps humming, repeating the same words of the song over and over again every few seconds.

“H-he’s _gone_ and I’m- I’m – I just w-want m-my brother b-back, p-please.”

Lance doesn’t answer. He can’t answer because Keith’s sobs feel like a stab in his heart and he can’t do anything but hold him. He cradles him in his arms and starts rocking them back and forth in a soothing rhythm as his voice echoes around the hangar and let Keith to run his breakdown.

A few stray tears fall from his blue eyes as he strokes Keith’s hair before a purr inside him makes him look up and his eyes widen in surprise when Blank’s vibrant yellow eyes focus on him, alive and ready.

He feels another purr followed by a tug but Lance shakes his head subtly.

 _‘Not now, Black.’_ He thinks as he pulls Keith closer to him and looks away, _‘Not now, please.’_

Black stays silent after that and only Keith’s sobs echoes around them.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! <3
> 
> Here’s my tumblr, just in case: [bleusarcelle](http://bleusarcelle.tumblr.com)


End file.
